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Lo- and high-carb meals for fitness

Lo- and high-carb meals for fitness

With 1.3 million Instagram followers and almost 190,000 more on Twitter, Joe Wicks (aka “The Body Coach”) is a social media superstar.

The 30-year-old super-hunky personal trainer got noticed posting 15-second videos of recipes that can be made in 15 minutes or less. His first book, “Lean in 15: 15-Minute Meals and Workouts to Keep You Lean and Healthy,” includes 100 recipes and workout ideas.

The photos of his clients — found by searching @thebodycoach as well as in his book — are impressive.

His approach: exercise and strategically time your eating of nutritious foods to burn fat and build muscle. Non-workout days call for healthy fat, but limited intake of carbs. When to eat carbs? — following a workout to refuel your body.

To illustrate the difference, here are two recipes: Eggs Baked in Avocado is high in fat and low in carbs; Quick Tortilla Pizza — with carb-heavy tortillas, tomatoes, kidney beans and other ingredients — is designed to replenish the body after exercise.

Each recipe can be made in less than 15 minutes.

EGGS BAKED IN AVOCADO

4 slices Canadian bacon

1 ripe avocado

2 eggs

salt and pepper

1 red chile, finely sliced — remove the seeds if you don’t like it hot

Preheat the broiler to high, then lay the bacon on the broiler pan or a baking sheet and slide underneath. Broil for 3 minutes on each side.

Meanwhile, cut your avocado in half, remove the pit and scoop out a generous tablespoon of flesh from each half to create a hole big enough for the egg. No need to waste the leftover avocado — you can save it to make some guacamole or just eat it on the spot!

Crack an egg into each avocado half, season with a little salt and pepper and place on a microwaveable plate. Microwave the eggs in 30-second bursts for 2 minutes — this should ensure firm whites, but runny yolks.

Serve up the baked eggs and avocado with the bacon and a scattering of chile.

Top tip: To stop the avocados rocking on the plate, slice off a little bit underneath to make a flat base.

Our assessment: It’s easy to scoop out some of the flesh in each avocado half to make room for an egg. I went wide rather than deep to avoid creating a hole. If you don’t like chili peppers, try thin slices of bell pepper. If you don’t have Canadian bacon, regular bacon will do.

QUICK TORTILLA PIZZA

4 large handfuls of baby spinach leaves

2 large tortillas

3/4 cup canned chopped tomatoes

1 cup canned kidney beans, rinsed and drained

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

8 black olives, pitted and cut in half

9 ounces sliced cooked meat — I like ham or cold roast chicken

2 large eggs

salt and pepper

green salad, to serve — optional

Put the kettle on to boil and preheat your oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.

Tip the spinach into a large colander and pour over boiling water from the kettle until it wilts. Quickly run the spinach under cold water to cool, then use your hands to squeeze out as much moisture as possible.

Place the tortillas on a nonstick baking sheet. Mix together the tomatoes, kidney beans and oregano, then spread over the tortillas. Divide the wilted spinach evenly between the tortillas, then scatter over the olives and meat. Make a little well in the middle of each tortilla pizza and crack in an egg. Season the pizzas with salt and pepper, then slip into the hot oven and bake for 12 minutes, or until the edges are browned and the white of the egg is set.

Slide the pizzas onto a board and serve with a big green salad … or just wolf down.

Our assessment: These pizzas are a snap to make. If you want to eat them with your hands, the key is not to overload the ingredients on top of the tortillas.

From the book: Lean in 15: 15-minutes Meals and Workouts to Keep You Lean and Healthy” by Joe Wicks; 222 pages, $24.99. Published by William Morrow Cookbooks, 2016.

What you get: The recipes all call for only simple ingredients, and the exercises require minimal equipment.

In his own words: “No matter how busy you are, you can take control and find a quarter of an hour to cook your meals and stay lean. This isn’t a strict diet — it’s a lifestyle that will transform your body and the way you eat forever.”